Australian shipbuilder Austal announced it delivered two Cape-class patrol boats to the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard (TTCG), just seven months after it launched the first of two ships in December 2020.
The 58 meter patrol boats, TTS Port of Spain (CG41) and TTS Scarborough (CG42), were accepted by Lieutenant Commander Francise Paulette Cazoe of the TTCG, at a delivery ceremony held at Austal Australia’s Henderson shipyard on May 14.
Austal CEO Paddy Gregg said the two patrol boats were the first Cape-class vessels manufactured by Austal to be exported, following the delivery of ten similar vessels to the Australian Border Force and Royal Australian Navy over the past decade.
“The Cape-class is Austal Australia’s signature patrol boat design, with twelve vessels now delivered and a further six under construction at our dedicated defence shipbuilding facility in Henderson,” Gregg said.
“The Trinidad and Tobago Government is delighted to accept these impressive new Cape-class Patrol Boats, that will significantly enhance our operational capability in Trinidad and Tobago,” Lt Cdr Cazoe said.
“The Austal Australia team have been very professional, supportive and efficient throughout the design and construction process and we thank them for their outstanding effort over the past two challenging years.”
The TTCG’s Cape-class Patrol Boats are based on the 58 meter monohull vessels operating with the Australian Border Force and Royal Australian Navy, with a number of design customizations to meet TTCG mission requirements, including additional armament placements and crew accommodation for up to 27 persons.
Both TTS Port of Spain and TTS Scarborough are capable of patrols up to 28 days, with a range of over 3,000 nautical miles and a top speed in excess of 25 knots. Each vessel has two 7.3 meter rigid hull inflatable boats that may be deployed while underway, for a variety of constabulary missions.
Austal is also delivering 21 steel-hull Guardian-class patrol boats for 12 Pacific Island nations and Timor Leste under the SEA3036-1 Pacific Patrol Boat Replacement Project, with ten patrol boats delivered since 2018.
